Judge Denies Motion To Dismiss In Free Speech Case
On August 15, 2024, U.S. Federal District Court Judge William Jung issued his ruling denying the Motion to Dismiss filed by attorneys for the “Uhuru 3” - Omali Yeshitela, Penny Hess and Jesse Nevel - who argued that the case violates the First Amendment. Jung’s decision came over one year after the Motion was filed, ten months after oral arguments on the Motion were presented and six months after Magistrate Judge Anthony Porcelli recommended to the district judge that he deny the Motion.
On August 14, 2024, the same Judge denied the prosecutors’ “motion in limine”, filed August 1, 2024, to restrict the Uhuru 3 attorneys from arguing to the jury that their defendant’s speech is protected by the First Amendment, stating that “whether the conduct is shielded by the First Amendment is a legal issue to be decided by the Court, and arguments concerning such legal issues will only confuse the jury.”